Op Shop Guide Victoria Giveaway

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Kelly Lainson, a resourceful and enthusiastic bargain hunter, has compiled an extensive alphabetical listing of Victorian Op Shops. 'The ‘Op Shop Guide (Victoria)’ is a stylish, practical and easy reference directory to locating and shopping at these valuable outlets. Each Op Shop is recorded by its suburb. The index lists Op Shops by name.

There are over 380 pages detailing 773 Op Shops. It delivers an overview of the stores’ purposes location and operational details.

Kelly spent a lot of time researching for her book; calling pubs in towns in order to establish the whereabouts of local op shops, sending letters, and in some cases receiving personal hand written notes back from op shop staff, detailing such things as shop history, disability or pram access, and discount days.

To hear more on Kelly's book research, you can listen to a radio interview here.

Scattered throughout the book, you will find little tips such as "Handy Hint #05 'Scrub stains with a toothbrush and sard wonder soap to get clothes looking like new' "

I would very much like to keep this book for myself, but instead I will be giving it away to one Recycled Fashion follower. To be in for a chance to win the Op Shop Guide (Victoria), leave a comment below with your own op/thrift shop handy hint. The winner will be drawn in a week from now.

International entries are welcome, although the book will not be useful to you unless you intend to travel to Victoria, Australia any time soon!

The OpShop Guide Victoria can be found on facebook, and is available to buy online for $24.95 + $12 postage here

I'd love this too, not that I need to go to any more op shops (as you well know...) My tip would be - leave no stone unturned! Search through sections which you would think would hold no interest for you. Sometimes op shop staff categorise objects in strange ways, which is why I found my cape in the homewares section!!

Here are my top thrifting tips:-Know your local stores’ sale or re-stocking days, of course.-Turn on your creative brain. See everything as a novelty item that can be further customized with minor tailoring. This will make it even more unique.

-Start in the accessories section. I almost always find one piece that inspires the rest of my shopping trip. You’d be amazed how much one ring, or one really interesting scarf can transform an outfit you already have, or inspire you to look for other pieces you wouldn’t normally think of.

-Items that are a bit more high-maintenance (require dry cleaning) are often good finds, since they’ve been better looked after, are made of more sophisticated fabrics, and can last longer… silks, wool, etc.

Wonderful! It's always fun visiting an area and checking out their opshops. A book like this would be great to find out shops' opening hours. What I usually look for when I go into a shop are colour first, then look at the style for clothes.

oh can't wait to see that new book.my tip... check EVERY rack, don't pass the jackets, cause you don't want one, as most shoppers are lazy and just plonk the items back ANYWHERE after trying them on, so you find an amazing handknitted mohair cardi in with a rack of men's overalls (cause they are closest to the changeroom!). .. looking....looking..... looking is the key to success♥

If i dont win this im certainly buying it but it never hurts to have a go! My tip never give up on op shopping if you go and find nothing go the next week, stock rotates fast and also look harder go through everything and think outside the box.

My tip would be to frequent your local op-shops and make an effort to be-friend the volunteers....if you have a love for a particular decade of clothing, or are on the search for something in particular - let them know! Chances are if they remember you and come across that special something, they will keep it aside for you. The op-shop ladies (and men!) are your best friend!

I would love to get my hands on this fabulous book! I always check out the ladies clothes for my two kids. Skirts can be easily made into dresses or if you have a bit more sewing expertise there is usually enough fabric to make anything kid sized. I have also altered heaps of ladies tops to become dresses for girls over the years too. Great blog by the way :)